Player Ratings: Rapids Reach U.S. Open Cup Semi-Final, Top San Jose 2-0 at Home

Commerce City, Colo – For the first time since 1999, the Colorado Rapids will be playing in an Open Cup Semifinal. The Rapids hosted the San Jose Earthquakes on a chilly Wednesday night inside Dick’s Sporting Goods Park and advanced to the next stage of the Open Cup. 

Cup magic stayed alive for Matt Wells’ side who reached the quarterfinals after defeating rivals, Colorado Springs Switchbacks in penalties, before topping the Earthquakes 2-0 in a wild game with three VAR checks. 

Wells used his full strength, starting Herrington, Holding, and Hansen who were imperative to the clean sheet. Navarro served as the target man with Paxten Aaronson and Wayne Frederick supporting. Miguel Navarro inverted into the midfield with Josh Atencio and Darren Yapi opened the scoring after 20 minutes. 

A memorable night in Commerce City means Colorado advances to face St. Louis at home with a trip to the final on the line in September.

The Rapids return to MLS play this weekend at home against FC Dallas before the World Cup break. 

Nico Hansen

Another Open Cup start and an instrumental part of Colorado advancing to the Open Cup Semifinal. Hansen deserved the start and the clean sheet. He was composed in buildup, made the right decisions, and was confident. He made several wonderful saves on the night and had a real presence in his box. 8/10

Reggie Cannon 

A good night. It was Cannon’s first start since the match against the Switchbacks. He defended well, minus some moments where he was caught out by pace or switched off for a moment. He got forward really well and made a lung-busting run into space. Unfortunately, Dante Sealy didn’t lay the ball off for a very good chance. 7/10

Lucas Herrington 

Another mature and composed performance. Herrington stopped a multitude of San Jose’s attacks and was composed on the ball. He offered a lot offensively and picked out gaps in the opposing press. Herrington is a massive reason for the Rapids return to a U.S Open Cup Semifinal. 7.5/10

Rob Holding 

A good night for Colorado’s backline. Holding was fantastic in finding gaps to play through and was composed in buildup phases. He put out multiple fires inside the Rapids box. He was strong in his press and tackles and really limited a good San Jose side. 7/10

Miguel Navarro

Another start for Navarro and a good performance. He served as a wingback and defensive midfielder, inverting at times throughout the match, and he was really composed and precise in his passing range. He distributed the ball effectively and kept possession. Alongside a phenomenal effort and defensive ability, Navarro was once again class. 8/10

Wayne Frederick

Frederick played just in front of Atencio and Navarro and occupied the middle and final third alongside Aaronson. He got into some really dangerous pockets. He progressed the ball and looked a real threat driving at the backline. He took a knock early on and continued the match and drew a penalty just before halftime. 8/10

Josh Atencio

It was Atencio’s first start since his concussion against the Houston Dynamo. He covered a lot of ground on the night and stifled San Jose’s midfield. Atencio was top-notch in arriving into pockets and bouncing one-touch or turning and playing forward. The disallowed goal robbed him of an assist but a good night overall. 8/10

Paxten Aaronson 

Aaronson played out wide and inside the midfield at times. He occupied the space just in front of Navarro and looked really dangerous on multiple occasions. He arrived into little pockets of space and was able to turn and create a lot of opportunities. When he was pushed out wide, he was dynamic and made several dangerous runs. He was a nightmare for San Jose to mark. 7/10

Darren Yapi

Yapi delivered one of his most complete performances of the season and it was enough to advance Colorado to the Open Cup Semifinal. On the goal, he gets on the end of a dangerous cross and does the rest. He was active, recovered well, and linked up play well. Yapi continues to show levels as he develops. 9/10 man of the match

Rafael Navarro 

Not one of his greatest performances on the ball. Wells stuck Navarro up top as a true target man. He held up play well despite dealing with aggressive centerbacks. He still got on the scoresheet and created a lot of dangerous opportunities. Although it might not have been a complete performance, he showed a strong mentality to remain clinical. 8/10

Dante Sealy

Sealy delivered a good performance. He was good in 1-v-1 chances and got an assist on the opener of the night. It was a short corner link-up, and he whipped the ball in off of one-touch, playing a perfect ball to the back post. Sealy had a lot of chances on the counter to capitalize on the final action but missed some chances. 7.5/10

Substitutes

Georgi Minoungou

Minoungou entered the match for Sealy in the 62nd minute. He was put out wide in a front three of Yapi, Navarro, and Minoungou. His movement was fluid and dangerous in 1-v-1 situations. Late on in the second half, he nearly got on the scoresheet, with a stepover inside the box and a shot on target. 7/10

Jackson Travis

Travis entered for M. Navarro in the 65th minute in the wing-back position, and he also inverted into the middle and served as a defensive midfielder. He was composed on the ball and kept possession. He defended well in situations and caused some attacking threat. 7/10

Matt Wells

Colorado are two wins away from their first trophy since lifting the MLS Cup in 2010. Wells is a big part behind the success. Although form has suffered in the MLS, his mentality, coaching, and identity has shone through. 

Wells started most of his regular first team, and deployed a really dangerous counter-attacking style. San Jose weren’t in the game in the second half, and Wells’ side showed their control of the tempo and the ability to close out a game. 

Wells has taken this competition seriously from the start and he’s brought the Rapids back into an Open Cup Semifinal. At five months into the process, Colorado has an identity and is continuing to build this dominant playstyle. 

Despite some bumps in the road, Colorado are one step closer to club silverware and that’s an achievement in itself. 8/10

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